​I am officially a Rottnest Channel Solo Swimmer! But man, it was tough.The conditions yesterday were perfect, with a blue sky, air temperature of 36 degrees and water temperature a refreshing 21.5 degrees. The atmosphere was amazing at the start and finish line but the bit in between really challenged me.

The day started at 2.55am as Campbell had to get up early to meet our Skipper and Paddler, Damian Cleary (Damo) and Cameron Jarvis (Cam), South of Fremantle to launch the boat.

At 4.15am my Cousin Mon and I set off for Cottesloe Beach, Perth in the dark as we had to be there by 5am for registration. We made it, plastered on the suncream, had a quick chat with my coach Trent Grimsey who settled my nerves and gave the crew a call to make sure they were in position 1km from the start line.

The most stressful part of the swim is finding your paddler and then the support boat. With 100’s of boats and paddlers waiting to collect their swimmer, this is no easy feat. All 2890 swimmers (314 solo swimmers) have to wear the official swim cap which is colour coded according to the category (solo, duo or relay team) and the majority wear black racing suits, so it is really difficult to pick the swimmer out of a crowd. Equally challenging is finding the paddler from the water. Neon Zinc on swimmers and flags, wigs and hats on paddlers, make finding each other a bit easier.Luckily Cam and I met up without any dramas and the boat soon joined us at the 1km mark.

​I was off and racing. I felt brilliant in the water and was enjoying the crystal clear waters off Cottesloe beach and fish spotting. Early on, the only casualty was poor Cam who managed to capsize losing his beloved Bundaberg rum flag and fishing rod which was being used as the flag pole!Unfortunately for me though, the serenity didn’t last long and 1hr in I got hit by a stinger wrapping across my chest and under both armpits. Wow, those buggers hurt! But I kept swimming, and the pain began to ease a little.

About 3 hours in I had hit the halfway point and from here things went a little more downhill. I got hit by another stinger across my face and again under my armpit. From here my lips swelled and I was not very happy. It was at his point that l also began to feel nauseated. I managed to tolerate 2 more feeds before they started to come back up, I apologise to the swimmer who was behind me at this stage, it wasn’t pretty.

​At the 19km mark the support boats must leave the swimming channel and I was hanging out for my crew to finally wave me goodbye. At one point I stopped swimming to see if I could see the finish line and was wondering why they were still with me. My paddler Cam calmly called out that the boat was about to leave and he would only be with me another 200m and then i was on my own. I could’ve hugged him!

I slowly plodded my way up to the finish line (I wanted to avoid a public spew on the finish line!) and finally touched sand. There is no better feeling than hitting that sand and standing upright after a 20km swim. Pure relief. With my swollen lips and racoon eyes I crossed the finish line in 6hrs 51mins.Although this swim didn’t go to plan and I didn’t achieve the time I was hoping, under the circumstances I couldn’t have done any better. This was a huge learning curve for me and a fantastic test for my mind and body.

​I have a truck load of work to do over the next 5 months but am closer than ever to achieving my ultimate goal of successfully crossing the English Channel and raising $100,000 for the Cure Brain Cancer Foundation.

Thank you for all those messages of support before, during and after the race, and to all those who have donated, as we have now raised more than $20,000!! Remember, any donation, no matter how much, makes a difference.

A special thanks must go out to my skipper, Damo and paddler Cam for their support throughout the swim, and making this challenge a reality. I was really lucky to find a couple of 'salt of the earth' blokes to help me out!

My Crew- Damo, Cam and Campbell

​As for my recovery post a 20km swim, it is safe to say I feel a lot better than my crew and Mon who celebrated hard on my behalf post swim. WiIl I be having another crack next year? I certainly won’t be ruling it out!!

Jane Gordon

I am 35, married to an amazingly supportive man, mother of 3 little boys and recently swam the English Channel Solo in 2016. I was swimming to raise money and awareness for Cure Brain Cancer Foundation and to pay tribute to our friend Jess who had recently lost her battle with this disease.Follow our journey, support the cause. It's time to make a change.